[HISTORY: Adopted by the City Council of the City of Yonkers 12-8-2015 by L.L. No. 23-2015. Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Penalties — See Ch. 1, Art. III
Code enforcement and appearance tickets — See Ch. 1, Art. IV.
[1]
Editor's Note: Former Ch. 19, Bureau of Administrative Adjudication, adopted 10-22-2013 by L.L. No. 7-2013, was repealed 6-10-2014 by L.L. No. 8-2014. See now Charter Article VIA.
The enforcement procedures established in this chapter and Chapter 59 shall govern enforcement of Chapters 20 through 31 of this Code.
For the purposes of this chapter, the terms used herein are defined as follows:
DIRECTOR
The Director of the Office of Licensing, who is also referred to as the Consumer Protection Officer in Article IIIA of the Charter, and shall include the designee of the Director, unless otherwise provided.
OFFICE
The Office of Licensing of the City of Yonkers.
A. 
Whenever an offense or violation is committed or a matter regarding the suspension or revocation of a license or permit, under any provision of Chapters 20 through Chapter 31 of the Yonkers City Code, one or more of the following enforcement actions may be commenced by the Director:
(1) 
An appearance ticket may be issued.
(2) 
An administrative enforcement proceeding may be commenced, as authorized in this chapter or Chapter 59 and civil penalties may be assessed or a license or permit may be suspended, canceled or revoked.
(3) 
A criminal action may be commenced by the Corporation Counsel in a court of competent jurisdiction seeking fines, imprisonment or both.
(4) 
A civil action may be commenced in a court of competent jurisdiction seeking civil penalties, an injunction to compel compliance or restrain violations, or both, and in association therewith imposition of any other relief allowed by law, including but not limited to attorney's fees and costs.
B. 
Use or commencement of any enforcement action or remedy authorized in Subsection A of this section shall not preclude the use of any other enforcement action or remedy at any time. Nothing in this section shall require a commencement of any administrative code enforcement proceeding prior to the issuance of an appearance ticket or commencement of a civil or criminal action in a court of competent jurisdiction.
C. 
Administrative code enforcement proceedings shall include but not be limited to proceedings to:
(1) 
Correct, abate or otherwise remedy any violation of Chapter 20 through Chapter 31 of the Yonkers City Code, including the levy of civil penalties.
(2) 
Suspend or revoke any permit, license or certificate.
(3) 
Order compliance with any applicable provision of Chapter 20 through Chapter 31 of the Yonkers City Code.
D. 
Notwithstanding the provisions of this section and the remainder of this chapter, the Fire Department, the Department of Housing and Buildings and the Bureau of Plumbing may enforce violations of Chapters 20 through 31 relating to fire safety, building safety and plumbing safety, respectively. The procedures set forth in Chapter 55, Fire and Building Code, shall govern enforcement by the Fire Department, Department of Housing and Buildings and Plumbing Bureau.
Administrative enforcement shall be commenced by issuance of a notice of violation; a notice of license, permit, approval or certificate revocation or suspension; any other notice or order authorized in Chapter 20 through Chapter 31 of the Yonkers City Code or any combination of the foregoing. Any issue related to the approval, revocation, suspension, denial or disciplining related to a permit, license or certificate issued by the Department of Licensing shall be handled by the Department of Licensing unless the Director rules otherwise. All matters regarding the contents of the notice or order and its service shall be in accordance with Chapter 59 of the City Code.
A. 
The Office may schedule one or more hearings regarding matters raised in a notice or order. Such hearing may be set without need of any request for a hearing. Unless notice of the hearing was provided when the administrative code enforcement process was commenced, reasonable advance written notice of the hearing shall be provided by first class mail, registered or certified mail, return receipt requested or by any other method authorized by the New York Civil Practice Law and Rules.
B. 
Hearings may be consolidated on one or more notices or orders. Hearings may be rescheduled, at the discretion of the Director, for good cause shown.
C. 
At the hearing, persons, including City employees and representatives of the Office, may present testimony and other information regarding the matters raised in the notice or order. The rules of evidence do not apply.
D. 
Subpoenas may be issued, upon the prior approval of the Corporation Counsel, to compel attendance and testimony of witnesses and production of documents or other information or records. A subpoena shall be served and enforced as provided in the New York Civil Practice Law and Rules relating to enforcement of a subpoena issued by a board or committee.
E. 
If no person against whom enforcement is sought appears at the hearing, the hearing may proceed solely on information and evidence submitted by the Office.
F. 
Appropriate enforcement shall be ordered in writing after one or more hearings. Such order may mandate appropriate corrective action; may mandate compliance with applicable requirements; may revoke or suspend a license, approval, permit or certificate; may impose civil penalties; and may address other matters as are necessary to properly conclude the administrative enforcement proceeding.
G. 
Any hearing pursuant to which civil penalties may be levied shall be conducted by an Administrative Law Judge in the Bureau of Administrative Adjudication.
H. 
For good cause shown, in the discretion of the Director, the time to complete corrective or remedial action or code enforcement may be extended.
I. 
All orders shall be mailed or otherwise delivered to the parties who appeared at the hearing.
J. 
In each final decision or order, the appeal rights of those person aggrieved shall be stated.
A. 
Notwithstanding any other provision of the Yonkers City Code, whenever a violation of any provision of Chapter 20 through Chapter 31 by a person or other entity causes anyone to suffer damage or loss of money or property of $5,000 or more, then such violation shall be a Class I offense.
B. 
In addition to the penalty authorized in Subsection A of this section, civil and criminal penalties shall be assessed in accordance with the penalties authorized in Chapter 20 through Chapter 31 of the Yonkers City Code.
A. 
Civil penalties may be imposed by the Administrative Law Judge after a hearing.
B. 
An action for civil penalties or to enforce the administrative imposition of civil penalties may be commenced in a court of competent jurisdiction by itself or in conjunction with any other civil remedy available to the City. The City's action may seek an award for attorney's fees, costs, expenses and disbursements.
C. 
When the City obtains a judgment in an action for civil penalties as authorized in this action, in addition to the appropriate methods of enforcement of the judgment established in the New York City Civil Practice Law and Rules, such judgment may be enforced by the Yonkers City Code.
Applicants for licenses or permits under any chapter of the Consumer Protection Code must have background checks and be fingerprinted. This finding is in accordance with the Code of the City of Yonkers. Fingerprint cards will be prepared for the applicant by the Yonkers Police Department or other entity to perform the fingerprinting for identification processing. Two sets of the cards will be forwarded to the Director of the Office of Licensing or his or her designee. The cards and any applicable fees will then be forwarded to the New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services (DCJS) for processing. The criminal history records processed by the DCJS concerning the applicants shall be submitted to the Director or his or her designee, for review and consideration of the contents of those records and whether the applicants are eligible for said licenses or permit. If the information received indicates that there is a pending criminal offense that would require a disqualification, the prospective applicant shall forward documentation to the Director evidencing the disposition of such offense in accordance with the procedures established by the Director. If an individual has been convicted of committing any crime, his or her application will be disqualified. Upon a determination of disqualification, the Director or his or her designee shall notify the applicant of said determination. Said notice shall include information regarding the right to appeal and contest any claimed ground for disqualification in accordance with the procedures established by the Director. All determinations will be made in accordance with Article 23-A of the Corrections Law. Any challenge to the information contained in the criminal records provided by the DCJS shall be conducted in accordance with the applicable DCJS rules and regulations. The Director shall establish all procedures necessary for the implementation of the process for any appeal.
Unless otherwise authorized by federal or state law, rule or regulation, or specifically authorized by that chapter of the Consumer Protection Code, any applicant for a license or permit under any chapter of the Consumer Protection Code must be 18 years of age on the date of the submission of the application.